Isaiah Thomas Says He’s Taking Too Much Blame for Cavs Struggles

“We’ve been a lowest five [rated] defensive team in the NBA the whole time [this season],” Thomas told ESPN Saturday. “So when I come back, it’s my fault now. Which, life isn’t fair, but that’s not fair, bro. At all. I just laugh at those things because I know in this circle and this team, everybody believes in each other, and everybody’s in here for it to work and for us to be playing in June. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Thomas also said there’s no bad blood between him and Kevin Love. Thomas was rumored to have called out Kevin Love in a fiery team meeting after Love sat out most of the Cavs’ 148-124 to the Thunder last Saturday with an illness. Thomas said he was just trying to find out where Love was, not doubting the legitimacy of his illness.

Thomas returned from a lengthy absence due to a hip injury earlier this month. Cleveland is 4-5 when he plays, and his defense has been heavily criticized.

Cleveland has lost 11 of 16 to drop into third place in the Eastern Conference. Cavs are 26th in scoring defense (109.6) and have ranked near the bottom of the league in that statistic for virtually the whole season.